Rhine water levels 2018 and similar topics

[acwmom]

4 hours ago, notamermaid said:

Oh, good. Actually, I thought she might not show up due to the bad signal at Boppard. Most signals going upstream are lost between Spay and Boppard. Downstream, at least in her case, is working better.

 

There is indeed less traffic around there today. Partly due to different schedules now that winter is approaching I should think, but I fear that some ships have tried to make a fast move in either direction to get where they want to be and others will stay ready for ship swaps. The level is touch and go for the 135m ships.

 

notamermaid

 

The Antoinette's hotel manager posted a nice fall picture of Boppard today on Instagram. So yes, indeed, they made it through the gorge.

 

Robin

[clarku]

Heard from TA today that our Crystal Bach 11/11-18 Frankfurt-Mainz cruise will be Cologne-Antwerp on the Crystal Mahler instead, with the same dates, due to water levels and damage received in recent accident.  Offered up to $1k for each of us to change return flight out of Brussels and 30% of what we’ve paid for this cruise on a future cruise. Crystal will provide transport from Frankfurt airport to Cologne....or a full refund.  We decided to roll the dice and just go for it since we aren’t too flexible on our timeline.  

[CILCIANRQTS]

Viking Mani, Basel to Amsterdam on Novembe4 9 will now be on the Idi, due to “ unscheduled maintenance”. Same ship, different name.

They warned of possible ship swap half way through, but hoping river levels keep rising for smooth sailing.

So much better scenario than imagined as recently as a week ago!

Happy dance,

[Mark_T]

Not many of the larger ships near the gorge today, but Robert Burns is worth watching, still the other side of Frankfurt right now though.

[notamermaid]

7 minutes ago, Mark_T said:

Not many of the larger ships near the gorge today, but Robert Burns is worth watching, still the other side of Frankfurt right now though.

And the Viking Ingvi is at Braubach. Question is: after the excursion to Marksburg castle, will she do a double-back and return to Koblenz? The S.S. Antoinette is now docked at Koblenz of course at her usual spot on the Moselle.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

The persistent weather pattern is bringing more rain and stormy conditions to Italy. The clouds look either to be hitting the Southern Alps or just managing to sneakily get past from the left, then moving into Switzerland. The westerly band of clouds is still coming in from France sweeping over Lorraine towards Luxembourg and Germany. It leaves mostly dry those areas in between where we want water for the Rhine gorge. So, not looking too promising. At least conditions have improved enough to be able to think of returning to normal. Most ferries are running again.

 

The river levels this morning: Maxau 364, Kaub 59cm, Koblenz 58cm.

 

notamermaid

 

[Mark_T]

Robert Burns looks to be heading up the gorge shortly.

 

I'd guess she is running empty as she has barely stopped for more than a few minutes over the last day or so, unless she is just making a dash for the gorge before the water falls any further... ?

[hbr777]

The water levels actually look good. For now. More rain, please, although I don't think any is in the forecast at the moment.

 

[notamermaid]

1 hour ago, Mark_T said:

Robert Burns looks to be heading up the gorge shortly.

 

I'd guess she is running empty as she has barely stopped for more than a few minutes over the last day or so, unless she is just making a dash for the gorge before the water falls any further... ?

I have wondered about them travelling empty with a few ships I have tracked. With this one I assume it is the case that she is sailing without passengers as she has not stopped in Rüdesheim. The River Empress is a 110m ship and as I write approaching Koblenz, coming from Frankfurt.

 

The Viking Ingvi has indeed returned to Koblenz.

 

If I thought the crew needed training I would say the River Voyager is practising docking manouevres. She has moved from Koblenz-Metternich to Koblenz-Rauental. There is a lot of rearranging going on on the Moselle there. Unusual places for sure. I have seen other ships in places where they normally do not dock. Viking was in Nierstein on the Rhine, ships are also docking in obscure harbours on the Main.

 

If your cruise itinerary has been altered you might find yourself in such a place. A couple of them I have mentioned in this thread:

 

Not much change in the river levels, but at least not dropping significantly anymore: Maxau 361cm, Kaub 59cm, Koblenz  62cm.

 

notamermaid

 

P.S: not sure what has gone wrong with my link.

Edited November 2, 2018 by notamermaid

[Mark_T]

1 hour ago, notamermaid said:

Not much change in the river levels, but at least not dropping significantly anymore: Maxau 361cm, Kaub 59cm, Koblenz  62cm.

 

It would be so nice to have them just a bit higher, but right now I'll take 'not dropping' as a win.

 

Robert Burns popped up again just past Boppard doing about 9kt so making great progress.

[gadugger]

On 10/31/2018 at 5:41 PM, Coli said:

Thanks for the update. I’m on this cruise as well - AMS-BAS on AMAPrima. Our flight to Europe out of JFK is with AMA, our flight to NYC from Bermuda is not. Not an issue right now for us.  Our awesome TA is currently on her way back to Bermuda and we’re catching up with her next week. I don’t expect to hear anything concrete from AMA until I’m pretty much stepping on a flight to NYC in 2 weeks. Hope to see you on the ship!

OK, maybe we can drown our sorrows together  🙂  As long as our itinerary gets us to Basel on time to catch our train to Paris, I will be able to adapt though still not very happy. 

Edited November 3, 2018 by gadugger
needed to clarify my point

[ural guy]

Vantage update: 2 Nov Basel to Amsterdam

 

We are to be put up in a hotel in Basel for the first 5 nights, with minor adjustments to our first 3 tours.

Then it get's silly.  We are going to bus to Strasbourg from Basel, return to Basel for the night, and then bus up to Koblenz.  Speyer will be eliminated as a tour, with Heidelburg substituted.  Cruise director didn't seem confident boat could make it to Mainz, so that tour may be a bus ride from Koblenz.  (Mainz wasn't mentioned as a potential boarding stop, as that is on 'wrong' side of gorge...Vantage doesn't want to have to amend the 16th sailing of the Voyager, AMS-BUD, so our cruise takes the hit.)

 

I'm wondering if Strasbourg didn't have enough hotel space for our 160 passengers?  Spending 3 nights Basel, 2 nights in Strasbourg would have eliminated 4 hours on a bus.  With how expensive everything is in Switzerland, I would have thought this would have appealed to Vantage.

 

On the positive side:  a festival is going on in Basel, 7 squares throughout the city have rides and vendor tables set up.  Not a Christmas market but still very festive, and the Gluhwein was great!  5sf per cup, 2sf deposit on your cup.  The most reasonably priced thing yet.

 

Public transportation is easy to figure out, and a pass comes with your lodging.  We're about 3-4 KM's from the historic district, which i understand as finding rooms last minute wouldn't have been easy. 

 

Regarding the bus rides, I didn't ask questions just yet as folks were jet-lagged during our initial brief and just wanted to eat.  CD stated that visiting Frieburg and Colmar days 2 and 3 wouldn't add but a few minutes on the bus.  I guess that comes down to your definition of a 'few minutes'.  Google maps doesn't seem to agree.  No mention of any compensation, Vantage seems to think they've done a bang up job so far.

[Mark_T]

2 hours ago, ural guy said:

(Mainz wasn't mentioned as a potential boarding stop, as that is on 'wrong' side of gorge...Vantage doesn't want to have to amend the 16th sailing of the Voyager, AMS-BUD, so our cruise takes the hit.)

 

Right now the water is sufficient to sail from Koblenz to Mainz but without more rain in the forecasts there is obviously a concern that by the time you need her in Mainz there will not be enough water, or worse, having made the trip upstream to Mainz she is then unable to get back downstream again...

 

Many cruise lines are facing the same risk analysis right now, but it has to be said, most seem to be handling it better than Vantage.

[notamermaid]

Ural guy,

what a "scrappy" itinerary this is! I hope you are having fun in Basel. You will certainly have seen a lot of the town by the time you leave the city. Getting so many people into a hotel that is of a standard similar to what you will have on the ship might have indeed proven difficult.

 

With the river levels slightly falling river cruise lines need to be careful where they position their ships in the next four days. I am sorry that you are caught up in that uncertainty.

 

Mark_T,

the Robert Burns has had a fast run downstream, making it through the Rhine gorge with her 135m at 58cm at Kaub. I think the fact that she dashed all the way to Neuss, past Cologne and Düsseldorf, without stopping confirms that she had no passengers on board. Who would want to be in the commercial harbour at Neuss?

 

The river levels are forecast to fall slightly as very little rain is forecast. The current figures are: Maxau 343cm, Kaub 55cm, Koblenz 56cm. Kaub is forecast to fall to 49cm.

 

notamermaid

 

[Mark_T]

2 hours ago, notamermaid said:

the Robert Burns has had a fast run downstream, making it through the Rhine gorge with her 135m at 58cm at Kaub. I think the fact that she dashed all the way to Neuss, past Cologne and Düsseldorf, without stopping confirms that she had no passengers on board. Who would want to be in the commercial harbour at Neuss?

 

 

Agreed, there are a few of these repositioning trips taking advantage of the recent rise in water levels to move ships where they are needed.

[nickbevoz]

We are booked on the Amakristina from Basel to Amsterdam on 17 December.  Still a bit over 6 weeks to go and no idea what the scenario will be.

 

however, I wanted to say how much we appreciate the posts and updates here by all of you.  It helps.

Edited November 3, 2018 by nstarrenburg

[hbr777]

2 hours ago, nstarrenburg said:

We are booked on the Amakristina from Basel to Amsterdam on 17 December.  Still a bit over 6 weeks to go and no idea what the scenario will be.

 

however, I wanted to say how much we appreciate the posts and updates here by all of you.  It helps.

Hello! We are on the AmaKristina B to A 12/3. We will let you know!

[Mark_T]

River Splendor is one to watch today, she was at Rudesheim in the early hours of the morning and is heading to Cologne today.

 

Looks like the water levels in the gorge are still holding up for the moment but I don't see how they can stay there much longer without rain.

 

Even if the gorge does remain passable it looks like Passau - Regensberg is already back in trouble again so the Amsterdam - Budapest trips will be affected as the ships from the Amsterdam end need to be replaced by those from the Budapest end if they are to sail below the gorge and that doesn't look likely at the moment...

 

 

[Jaydub99]

19 hours ago, hbr777 said:

Hello! We are on the AmaKristina B to A 12/3. We will let you know!

 

And I'll let you know hbr777 - We are with Avalon, A to B on 24 Nov. Pray for rain!

Edited November 4, 2018 by Jaydub99

[notamermaid]

24 minutes ago, Mark_T said:

River Splendor is one to watch today, she was at Rudesheim in the early hours of the morning and is heading to Cologne today.

 

Looks like the water levels in the gorge are still holding up for the moment but I don't see how they can stay there much longer without rain.

 

Even if the gorge does remain passable it looks like Passau - Regensberg is already back in trouble again so the Amsterdam - Budapest trips will be affected as the ships from the Amsterdam end need to be replaced by those from the Budapest end if they are to sail below the gorge and that doesn't look likely at the moment...

 

 

The River Voyager is still docked in Koblenz, awaiting ural-guy and the other passengers. If Vantage is anxious of being on the wrong side of the gorge they have every reason to be. Even if the 110m length gives her an advantage today, that might not be the case tomorrow or the day after.

 But first a good piece of news. Yesterday just when I was thinking that the 135m ships would not transit the gorge anymore I spotted the Avalon Passion approaching Boppard last night. According to marinetraffic she transited Koblenz and then docked at Engers. Today she is in Cologne. It suggests to me that she is able to do her normal itinerary and I hope the passengers enjoyed a concert at splendid Engers palace. I am not sure on which itinerary it is included.

 

The river levels: Maxau 334cm, Kaub 55cm, Koblenz 51cm. They will not hold, according to the forecast Kaub will fall to 47cm.

 

We will not get much rain which we owe to that unusual weather situation that makes rain and storms come in from the South rather than the West-southwest. It is devastating the beautiful Northern Italy 😭 and leaving us yearn after every inch. We often get rain as a result of a low over the British Isles but none is reaching us this Autumn. You, British, what have we ever done to you? I am beginning to like this Brexit thing less and less...

 

It is cold here now, proper Autumn. As it has been a long Summer and we have had few storms there is more Autumn foliage still giving us lovely colours. Not yesterday though, it was foggy, not misty, almost English-foggy and it did not leave the valley all day. Although it was a bit too much for eerie castle photos I quite enjoyed how it gave a mystical air, even to town street lamps.

 

notamermaid

 

[Mark_T]

31 minutes ago, notamermaid said:

😭 But first a good piece of news. Yesterday just when I was thinking that the 135m ships would not transit the gorge anymore I spotted the Avalon Passion approaching Boppard last night. According to marinetraffic she transited Koblenz and then docked at Engers.

 

 

It looks like Scenic Jewel came through last night as well, she arrived in Koblenz around 7:30am this morning.

[ganski]

We are on the Viking Eir and docked in Cologne, we are leaving tonight and headed to Braubach , getting on a smaller ship tomorrow and going through the gorge, then bussed to Strasburg. Missing Rudesheim this trip , so far Viking is doing an excellent job communicating with us about the trip , I’m sure they will continue with ship swaps and not want to get a ship stuck above or below the gorge 

[notamermaid]

ganski,

I hope you have had a good day in Cologne. Thanks for the report. I am a little surprised you are not swapping ships. It will be a long day for you tomorrow then. Enjoy the castles.

 

notamermaid

 

[DaveinCharlotte]

10 hours ago, notamermaid said:

The River Voyager is still docked in Koblenz, awaiting ural-guy and the other passengers. If Vantage is anxious of being on the wrong side of the gorge they have every reason to be. Even if the 110m length gives her an advantage today, that might not be the case tomorrow or the day after.

 

Alas, if I'm reading MarineTraffic right, River Voyager is one of Vantage's 135m ships (it's the older River Navigator that's 110m).  Our Nov 16 Bonn-Budapest trip is still looking very problematical at this point - Danube as well as Rhine gorge to worry about.  The River Splendor is supposed to wrap up a Budapest-Bonn trip in a few days; it's moored in Bingen at the moment, and I'll bet that's the furthest it gets.  On the Vantage website, I can't find any cruise that ship is supposed to take for the rest of November.  So maybe it will be available for ship-swapping to bridge the Rhine gorge.  Wouldn't help with the Danube though...  

[nickbevoz]

If this is accurate then the next two weeks are looking positive.

Edited November 5, 2018 by nstarrenburg